New Jersey Muslims take NYPD to court for monitoring their activities

A girl stands nearby as Sunni Muslim men take part in Eid al-Fitr prayers outside a mosque in the Brooklyn borough of New York (Reuters/Stephanie Keith) / Reuters

Muslims in New Jersey are set to go to court over the ruling that New York City police are legally allowed to carry out surveillance of their activities.

The case is spearheaded by two civil rights groups: Muslim
Advocates and the Center for Constitutional Rights, and involves
the NYPD monitoring the Muslim residents at businesses, mosques,
restaurants, schools and universities since 2002.

"The city's surveillance program is explicitly based upon,
and accordingly perpetuates, a malignant stereotype: that Muslims
are a danger to society," lawyers for the civil rights
groups wrote in their appeal brief.

In response to the articles, US District Judge William Martini
stated that security forces couldn’t carry out surveillance on
“Muslim terrorist activities without monitoring the Muslim
community itself."

He added that AP, and not police, would be responsible if any
harm was caused.

New York City stated that New Jersey authorities found no
evidence that the city police department had broken any state
laws.